Report the news, don’t become the news.
That’s an old adage that has been passed down from journalism teacher to aspiring journalism student, presumably since the dawn of the profession.
And while just about every reputable reporter will attempt to follow that steadfast rule, sometimes it really is unavoidable. Such was the case recently when the Canadian government passed the Online News Act. Essentially the law, which comes into effect later this year, calls on tech giants like Google and Meta (perhaps better known as Facebook) to compensate the creators of news content they share on their platforms. Both Google and Meta have responded by saying rather than adhere to the new rules, they will soon simply block access to Canadian news agencies from their sites.
Meanwhile reporters have been left to cover the latest developments of this story while the very future of their profession hangs in the balance.
While the Online News Act, known as C-18, would put an end to journalists getting shafted by having their articles they put a lot of time and effort into shared for free, it would almost certainly mean news outlets would see much less traffic driven to their sites. Less traffic means fewer advertising dollars.
Then of course there’s the consumer who no longer has easy access to links of note or interest.
Suffice to say, not an ideal situation for anyone.
Ever since the World Wide Web went live, news organizations have struggled with how to embrace it. Access to literally millions of readers sounds like a great thing, reaching far beyond the traditional door-to-door paperboy or girl delivery system. But with that sudden increase in readership came the dilemma of how to monetize it. Readers don’t always consider the costs of hours of research, fact-checking, editing and late night writing that goes into culminating a story that tells both sides, accurately and fairly.
A pay wall is one option, but those can always be circumvented. It’s no secret that many media companies are struggling, with mass layoffs from some of Canada’s largest media outlets a seemingly monthly occurrence. Since 2008, (coincidentally the year this naïve young reporter broke into the business) nearly 500 newsrooms have been shuttered across Canada.
If there’s one thing that’s reassuring for those of us in the business, it’s that the hunger for news remains. How the news gets delivered may alter and evolve, but that human desire to know that’s going on locally and around the world is constant.
Anytime the government gets involved on matters of the media, things can get murky. There’s always the fear that if media and government get too cozy, the risk of underhanded dealings to take place. The government that scratches the back of the media outlet could see stories spun in their favour come election time. But on the other hand, fewer media outlets are never a good thing either.
Here’s hoping some kind of middle ground can be found between the government and agencies such as Google. Journalists need to be compensated for their hard work. Canadians need access to reliable, well-researched Canadian news.
In the meantime if Facebook and Twitter do block access to Canadian news, readers are can always cut out the middle man and go directly to www.NapaneeBeaver.ca.
-Adam Prudhomme